Confused Much
by Kiwikatipo
Summary: Alec knows Max is pretending to go out with him. Max doesn't know Alec knows. Max and Alec go on a road trip with an obsessed Logan following them, whom Alec knows about but Max doesn't. Confused? So is everyone else in this fluffy MA fic.
1. Chapter 1

**Confused Much?**

This fic is AU _as follows_. Due to a spilt cup of coffee on the thermal imager during it's testing process, Whites men can't pick out transgenics in a crowd so Biggs didn't die.

American spelling as an experiment. (I feel so guilty)

This is an answer to a Pai challenge on Nuns with Pens

Terminal City

April 30th 2021

**Part 1**

"Oh my God yes." groaned Alec, "I'm coming, I'm coming."

Warm spring sunshine shone brightly through filthy glass, on the naked sweating bodies of Alec, CeCe and Biggs.

Alec put down in his cell phone in annoyance. "Christ Max can be a bitch." He complained, to his former childhood unit mates, lying on their separate bed rolls in opposite corners of their temporarily shared room. It looked like the room they'd found hurriedly last night at three thirty am, was some kind of weird glass house. Now they were all sweating like pigs. Oh well at least their stuff would dry.

Max would be running late for work too, if a frickin' water tower had collapsed on top of her room in Oak Street at three am. Causing her and all her possessions to get soaked, Alec reflected annoyed. Not to mention evacuating the rooms all at once with fifteen other transgenics. Some poor bastards had started to have panic flashbacks to the float tanks at Manticore.

Alec pulled on his damp clothes in revulsion, and shook water droplets off his sun glasses irritated. This day was starting to suck big time, and he hadn't walked out his front door yet.

Max revved her motor in impatience. Crap she was never on time for work, and the one time it looked like she was going to be, freakin' Alec was holding her up. She saw him racing down the stairs and honked her horn.

Alec jumped on the back of her bike and put his arms round her waist. To think any passer by on the street would envy him, his close proximity to the witch. What a joke.

"What were you doing, crawling down the stairs?" Max snapped, tapping her handlebars with impatience. She drove down Oak Street, hung a left and shot out the gates of Terminal City.

Today as an efficiency experiment, Normal was only having Moto-Pony work the afternoon shift. Therefore Alec was back to pedal power lending CeCe his motorbike for the afternoon shift, hence his ride in with Max. He leaned against Max wearily, thankful they were pals now and she didn't mind him touching her in the slightest.

Alec and Max just made it to work on time. Their reward for that good deed turned out to be Normal making them double up to deliver some packages, into a district that had a turf war going on between rival gangs.

The two couriers pedaled into the Furies turf cautiously. They had heard the sound of gunfire ten minutes ago, and had taken the long way round. They were going to be lucky to avoid coming across someone shooting it out. It was why they were actually for once wearing the ugly Jam Pony safety jackets, Normal had made for his slacker employees. Anything not to look like a gang member.

They dropped off the first five packages to satisfied recipients, but the last package was in the thick of the urban warfare.

Chaining up their bikes in the crumbling tenement block stairwell, the pair raced up the stairs before knocking on the door of a smelly old man with twelve cats.

"I'll get a tip for you." the old man said leering at Max.

Alec and Max turned simultaneously to the stairwell, alerted by their transgenic hearing. They nodded to each other in perfect understanding. Max quickly pushed the old man and herself inside his apartment. Alec leapt in after them, slamming the door shut.

The old man turned frightened rheumy eyes on them.

Max wrinkled her nose at the smell of cat urine in the apartment, and tried to smile reassuringly at the old guy.

"Relax grandpa." Alec said soothingly. "We just heard a group of people coming up the stairs."

The man looked at Alec as if he was crazy. There was not a sound to be heard.

Two minutes later it sounded like the 4th of July was happening down in the lobby. Sounds of gun fire, screams and shouts could be heard coming up the stairs. The old man flinched in terror.

"It's okay sir." Said Max sweetly to the guy. "They won't want us."

"I'll make us some coffee." The old man offered trying to be brave. "And don't call me grandpa son."

"Can I use your bathroom sir?" Max asked their inadvertent host.

Alec looked at her surprised. He supposed when ya gotta go, ya gotta go, but he wouldn't trust anything in this dude's house, hygiene wise.

The old man pointed to the door and Max went in and was pleasantly surprised to find no animal excreta on the tiled floor. She took her cell phone out of her pocket and rang up Cindy.

**Part 2**

Original Cindy knelt on the floor, her face in front of Normal's chair. Her head bobbed up slowly and then down again. She looked up at the sound of her cell phone and answered it.

"Hey Max, you know what our fool boss has me doing? Checking all the wooden furniture in his office for African termites" Original Cindy complained. "He gave me this weird device to test for them."

"That sucks I guess." Max said impatiently. "Listen O.C. I'm stuck uptown with Alec, in some old man's apartment, waiting for the Furies and Roaring 40's turf war to die down. Can you do me a favor O.C. and drop twenty bucks worth of groceries off for Logan at Josh's old place?"

"Still avoiding Logan huh?" Original Cindy sighed.

Alec sat back on the old guys living room couch and leaned his head against the wall. Alec found he could accidentally hear every word Max was saying in the bathroom. He went to sit forward, when he heard his name mentioned.

"Yeah well, me pretending to go out with Alec these past six weeks, has cut down on the amount of times Logan calls me. But he is still making lame ass excuses to see me, and for his own hot braincase good we have to be apart." Max sighed sadly. "It's tearing me up to lie to Logan, and I'm startin' to feel kinda crappy about deceiving Alec as well."

Alec's eyes widened in surprise, he couldn't help eavesdropping now. Alec had feline DNA he was curious.

"Ya between a rock and a hard place boo." O.C. said sympathetically, leaning forward to test the front desk for South African termites.

"Yeah 'cause I can't make that clean break, 'cause I do need Logan sometimes for his contacts y'know? I still love him and Alec and I are kinda friends now too." Max sucked in her breath. "Am I just a bitch?"

Alec batted off a worm ridden kitten and silently applauded Max's self diagnosis. He looked up and smiled charmingly, as the old guy gave him some stale instant coffee.

Max came out of the bathroom and slumped beside Alec on the sofa. Alec felt sorry for her in spite himself. Max had a big heart and it was always getting her into trouble. Alec had somehow become her friend when she had told him about Ben. Someone she was growing to trust and like, and she was using him without letting him know about it. He knew it would be gnawing at her conscience. Thank god his own moral compass wasn't as developed as hers.

A blood curdling shriek of agony came from the corridor, Max winced in sympathy for the unfortunate on the receiving end. Alec put a friendly arm round Max's shoulders. Max smiled at him guiltily.

"There's no sugar I'm sorry honey." The old man said trembling, as he passed her a mug of steaming coffee.

"No problem Sir." said Max cheerfully, quickly grabbing her coffee off him, before he spilled it in her lap. "Hey what was in the package we delivered?"

Max and Alec made it back only an hour later to Jam Pony, than they would have otherwise. They had a collection of 10 new packages and letters given to them by desperate residents stuck in the disputed gang area.

This mollified Normal who told them to take their forty-five minute lunch break. Alec cajoled Max to take him back to his old apartment to pick up dry clothes, as he was sick of wearing wet jeans. Alec thought they were starting to smell.

Ten kilometers away, Logan couldn't believe how recklessly Biggs drove. Or that the persuasive young male had been able to rope in Logan to help shift furniture to Terminal City, from both Joshua's old place and Alec partially vacated apartment.

Logan was kind of curious to see what Alec's apartment was like. He wondered if Alec would have posters of semi clad girls draped on cars or something. If he'd see Max's underwear on the floor, Logan caught himself. Logan just couldn't believe Max didn't love him anymore.

Logan looked terrified at Joshua and Mole enjoying the ride in their ski masks. Like that didn't scream for attention from the sector police.

**Part 3**

Mole unlocked the door to Alec's apartment and walked in with the rest of his moving squad.

Max stood frozen at the kitchen sink, only wearing her bra with a blue towel wrapped around her waist. She was eating spaghetti out of a bowl.

Alec came out of the bathroom immediately, to see who had come in. Alec was bare footed, bare chested and only wearing his jeans, he was doing up his belt buckle.

"Max and Alec getting busy?" Joshua blurted out, with his zero social skills.

_Nine minutes earlier_

Max looked round Alec's apartment, he still had most of Brain's furniture there. Iincluding his double bed, as it had been too heavy to move to Oak Street on motorbike. The thumping from his neighbor's stereo was shaking the walls. Good thing there wasn't a gang war happening in Alec's apartment block, because Max couldn't hear a thing outside in the corridor.

Max went to his cupboard and opened a can of spaghetti, chucking it in the microwave. She had skipped breakfast to get to work on time, and she was hungry.

Alec looked round his bed room frantically for clean clothes, they had to be somewhere. Aha his gym bag, he grabbed some clothes and started to strip in front of Max unthinkingly, without bothering to close his bedroom door.

Max turned her back flushing, Alec with his ten extra years inside Manticore on her, often surprised her with the things he did. Alec thinking Max was a total hard core soldier like CeCe.

"Hey Maxie you smell." Alec told her, undoing his belt buckle.

"Hey I did you a favor by coming here!" Max began indignantly, astonished at the childish insult out of the blue.

"Nah I mean like dog shit or something." Alec explained patiently. He'd never known a chick as defensive as Max.

"Oh I thought it was drains in your apartment." Max said, twisting round examining herself. "Oh yuck there's somethin' on the back of my jeans from that old guys place."

Alec walked over to her without thinking and brushed her upper thigh. "Oh gross it's come off in my hands. I think its cat puke." He disappeared off into the bathroom.

Somehow the smell was worse now that idiot had rubbed it. Max quickly took her jeans off and wrapped a towel hanging on the door around her waist. She dashed into the kitchen to get a cloth, detergent and water.

The microwave beeped and Max looked at the sloppy spaghetti and at her brand new white t-shirt. She could hear Alec run the sink basin and the sound and smell of aerosol shaving foam being applied. Hmm he was having a shave.

After washing her hands Max recklessly tore off her t-shirt and started to gulp down the spaghetti. She was starving.

Max was astonished to hear the front door unlock, and see Joshua, Mole and Logan come in.

Mole and Joshua were both wearing ski masks, very conspicuous on a warm spring day. Max secured her towel tighter. Logan had been right with his comment about how transgenics never knock and now he was doing it too!

Alec came out of the bathroom clad only in his jeans, to see who the hell had just walked in.

Josh was just staring at Alec in bewilderment. As if in slow motion and from a great distance Max saw Joshua's mouth shape the fatal words "Max and Alec getting busy?"

"Nah just getting lunch," said Alec amused. Knowing no one would believe that for a second, and why was Maxie only in her bra anyway? "And we've only got ten minutes here left. Um guys, how the hell do you happen to have keys for my apartment?" he added.

"Biggs gave me his spare key to your apartment Alec, and told us to get your furniture. He's in van downstairs." Joshua said confused, looking at Max and Alec's states of undress.

"Great," Alec enthused, thinking eagerly of the comfort he'd enjoy, compared to a soggy bed roll. "Help me move the bed Josh buddy!"

Logan stared internally tortured at Max, as she put the spaghetti down and pulled her t-shirt back on. So Max and Alec had sex in the middle of the day woohoo. If it had been the right time Logan would have had sex with her during her lunch break too. Logan wondered what else the two transgenics did together.

The transgenics left carrying the bed. Mole giving Max a knowing smirk, the gossip was going to be all over Terminal City by evening Max guessed. '452 and 494 went home for lunchtime sex.' Hopefully Alec would tell them it wasn't what it looked like, but he'd probably think a mix up like that was funny.

"Well nice of you to help the guys move." Max said brightly to her former boyfriend. She couldn't bear the tortured look on Logan's face, but for his own good she had to go through with him thinking she'd just had sex with Alec.

"Yeah." Said Logan quietly, he picked up an arm chair. "See you Max."

**Part 4**

"Well slide it in that hole then, if it doesn't fit." Max told Biggs agitatedly, while experiencing genuine pain.

Biggs put her rolled up painting in the bigger gap of the dresser, and Alec quickly shifted her heavy bed head off her little toe.

"Sorry Maxie." Alec apologised. "I wasn't expecting you to turn that way."

Alec and Biggs had helped Max move all the rest of her stuff that evening, that she had left with Original Cindy.

Biggs good naturedly teased Alec and Max about their 'lunchtime quickie' on the drive back from O.C.'s place, Biggs now completely believed them that they hadn't done anything, but it was fun to make Max cross.

Somehow it had come out that Max had always been easy to get mad, right from when she was little. Zane and Zack used to tease her all the time.

"Do you think that farm you stuck Zack in is still the best place for him?" Alec asked casually. "I thought it was crazy at the time but you wouldn't have listened to me six months ago."

"What makes you think I'd listen to you now?" Max sniped defensively.

Max thought about Zack that evening, as she set up her room. Alec was right, it was crazy leaving Zack defenseless with ordinaries, he needed to be with his own people. She had people who could help her with Zack now. Now she saw Joshua for the adult he was, Max realized she could have enlisted Joshua's help with Zack six months ago.

Max bust into tears of shame, she couldn't believe she'd put Logan ahead of Zack. She should have left Seattle with Zack, if it meant keeping her big brother safe.

Alec walked in with a can of beer for her. He looked embarrassed, as he witnessed Max's tears. It wasn't a strange thing around Terminal City, everyone experienced some kind of trauma from being in Manticore from time to time.

"Is this something to do with Logan?" Alec asked her warily, wondering when if ever she was going to inform Alec of their 'dating' status.

"No, yeah, I dunno." Max said wiping her eyes and blowing her nose on a piece of a rag. Tissues were a big waste of money in Post Pulse Seattle. She pulled herself together. "I just thought it would be good if I could get Zack back y'know? Maybe with all of the transgenics here, I could manage preventing him killing Logan." She opened the can of beer and drank it.

"Yeah" Said Alec doubtfully. "I actually came in for a reason. 453 contacted me this evening. Her husbands bailed out on her and she wants to make contact with other transgenics in Vancouver. She thinks it's safer to stay up there than come down to Seattle."

Max was fascinated about any information about her clone. "I thought you and the rest of the 09 clones were discouraged from being close to each other." She stated.

"Totally." smiled Alec "But we share a history of hell, and 453 and I were often made to work together as teenagers because we complemented each other."

"Please don't tell me you slept with my clone." Max pleaded, making her bed.

"Okay I won't then." Alec smiled at her suggestively, helping her. "Nah, we were never allowed alone with each other, in case we encouraged each other into sedition." He never had wanted to tell her part of the reason he couldn't kill Max the time White had put a Microexplosive in his brain stem, was because she reminded him too much of Sam.

Alec raised his eyebrows suggestively at the made bed and smirked. "Wanna christen your room."

Max hit him on the arm affectionately "Not with you sleazebag." She unpacked a box on her dresser and said to Alec without turning round. "If we get new papers to Sam, could you come with me at the same time and get Zack?"

"We don't know where Zack is," Pointed out Alec. "But yeah I can swing a coupla days off."

"I'll go see Logan about the address." Max said "I'll do it first thing before work tomorrow."

"Hey Max can ya give me another lift into Jam Pony?" Alec asked her. "I'm lending my bike to someone, so they can get some supplies of tryptophan."

"Yeah sure." Max said uncertainly. How the hell was she going to be able to pretend to Logan that she was going out with Alec? When Alec was gonna be right there beside her first thing in the morning.

"Night Max." said Alec wandering out of her room smirking. He wondered how the hell she was going to pull off pretending she was going out with him tomorrow.

**Part 5**

Logan fiddled with his tool frustrated. Annoyed he gritted his teeth and twiddled with his knob some more.

It was no use, Logan sighed put his screwdriver down and looked at his oven in despair. There was no way that piece of junk was ever going to work.

Microwaved oatmeal again for breakfast, yuck.

He heard a knock on the door and Max came in to the kitchen. His heart leapt involuntarily and then sank as Alec came in a step behind her.

"Hey." Logan said to both of them. "What's up?"

"We wanted to ask you where those transgenics we sent to Vancouver are and where Zack is?" Max requested nervously.

"Why?" Logan asked.

"Sam's husbands ditched her and she wants to be with other transgenics." Alec told Logan. Well hell Zack wasn't his idea.

"I want to make sure Zack is safe." Max shuffled uncomfortably. "It seems too dangerous now, him not knowing who he is. We could get him to Vancouver as well."

"Hmm you don't care that Zack still probably wants to kill me?" Logan queried, trying to sound like he was kidding.

"Of course I do!" Max reassured her former boyfriend quickly, "but I have enough transgenic help to prevent that from happening now."

"Not worried that Zack might be in love with her?" Logan joked bitterly to Alec.

"Nah why would I?" Alec beamed at Logan confidently. Max flinched holding her breath. Alec felt like bursting out laughing.

"Why would you indeed?" Said Logan snarkily, looking at the handsome younger male.

"I'm going with her of course. Could do with a break" Added Alec casually, ablaze with curiosity to see if that would make Logan bring up the fact he was meant to be going out with Max. All these weird scenes and vibes with Logan the past six weeks made sense to him now.

"Of course," Logan smiled tightly. "You'll probably cook S'mores on the way." He seemed to accuse Max.

"Great idea." Said Max between gritted teeth "I know how you're not in to that kind of thing. Can I have the addresses please?"

Logan went and grabbed a disk from his computer. "You guys have photographic memory right?"

Max and Alec both nodded. Logan printed the two addresses they needed on screen.

'Thanks Logan." Max said sincerely. "I appreciate this."

"No problem." Logan told her. "When are you heading out?"

"This Friday morning," Max told him. "Have to be back in Seattle Sunday night, Monday night at the latest."

"Well see you." Logan fare welled them both swiftly, finding the sight of them together too painful.

"What no be careful?" Alec laughed to Max. "Logan must be shitting himself about Zack."

"Shut up." Max said curtly getting on her bike.

Alec glimpsed Logan staring after them, through a chink in the kitchen curtains. Alec put his arms round Max's waist as she took off and he could feel her body tight with stress. God she needed to relax. What was with all the S'mores crap anyways?

S'mores cooked round campfires had been one of the few fun things as a kid they'd done at Manticore. He could count the fun non violent things on one hand virtually. Campfire cooking, orchestra, choir, chess and go club and okay he'd never admit it now but line dancing. As an eight year old line dancing had seemed darn fun. Maybe he would get some crackers, marshmallows and chocolate bars and surprise Max.

He wondered at himself, for bothering to make her happy like that. Max was just his pal like CeCe right? He smiled to himself.

No, he didn't want to have sex with CeCe because they had been raised together from the time he was a baby till he was ten and life got really bad courtesy of Max and her crew. In spite of his teasing of Max, he totally understood why Max didn't feel that way about Zack. Biggs had the same problem with CeCe. Biggs didn't want to sleep with her and CeCe was totally in love with Biggs, thank you Manticore for screwing with everyone's heads.

Alec had always wanted to have sex with Sam, he didn't know that was what his feelings were at fourteen of course. He had had romantic little fantasies about Sam for three years and then he got sent on his Mission to kill Robert Berrisford. He hadn't seen Sam for two years and then he saw Max back at Manticore.

When Alec saw Max's for the first time on parade, he immediately started having some hot little day dreams about her. Really sick ones looking back, as he was sure she was completely depraved from having lived outside Manticore for so long, and his only sexual experience at the time had been with a jaded Balkan prostitute called Lola.

Max shifted her body away from him slightly, as if sensing the change in his thoughts about her. Alec grinned unrepentantly. Max not wanting to copulate with him in Manticore had been disappointing, even though he totally got it. He guessed he must be in love with her in some weird way. He liked her, he admired her, he wanted to have sex with her and he kept risking his ass to help her. That must be love right?


	2. Chapter 2

Confused too much.

AN: Many many thanks to Flamyz of Ice for being my Beta on this one. Thank you thank you.

**Part 1**

Asha lay spread eagled over the desk in handcuffs. The Sector cop came towards her grimly with his truncheon raised.

Asha flinched in fear and begged desperately for mercy.

"No mercy for you, you dirty little whore," the cop said in her ear.

A knock on the door made them both jump up. Damn, it was hard for the two lovers to get quality time alone, and Matt's mother had agreed to take the widower's young son for the day.

Matt Sung quickly undid Asha's hand cuffs, adjusted his clothing and opened the door to his home.

"Hey Logan man, shouldn't you be in hiding?" Matt asked him quickly, inviting him in.

Asha stood in Matt's living room fully dressed, rubbing her wrists and smiled at Logan in greeting. "Hey Logan."

"I didn't know you two knew each other?" Logan commented in surprise.

"We met at your place remember? I gave her a ride home two months ago," Matt explained patiently.

"Oh yeah. Huh," Logan remarked absent-mindedly before turning to the Detective.

"Big favour Matt, can I borrow your car," Logan remembered Asha and added hastily, "or yours, and can I get a sector pass out of Seattle this Friday."

"Are you going to Canada?" Asha said puzzled. "How would we get our cars back?"

"It's Eyes Only stuff," was the short reply.

She paused, then snapped her fingers abruptly.

"You're in luck," Asha realised. "My next door neighbour died this morning. Go over and steal her car. It works and she did the single thing, no one'll miss it. That house is on borrowed time before it gets looted."

"Can you get me there now?" Logan asked urgently.

**Part 2**

**Friday**

"So much for the eight inches you promised me last night. It was an inch at the most," Max teased Alec, as they waited in the queue to get out of the city.

"Hey I only went on what Normal told me," Alec shot back.

"Well I'm glad it didn't rain much last night anyway," Max commented. "Should be great riding weather."

Max and Alec grinned at each other happily, waiting patiently in the queue to leave Seattle's boundaries. They knew there were serious matters to attend to, but they couldn't help being in a holiday mood.

Alec spotted Logan in the queue behind them. Some prickling sixth sense alerted him someone was watching them. Alec briefly entertained the idea of telling Max, but decided to leave it. She was relaxed, happy and she wasn't attacking him. Why ruin it? Moments like this didn't happen too often these days, what with White on their asses.

"Hold on Max."

Alec reached over and rubbed dirt off her cheek, at the same time checking his bike mirror for Logan's reaction. Yes, Logan was flinching in emotional pain. For the love of God, how masochistic and crazy could an adult man be? Didn't Logan realise the risk he was taking trying to get through the checkpoint?

The line moved forward and Max and Alec had their papers checked. They were good to go. The two transgenics hit the gas hard, for the sheer thrill of driving fast in open spaces.

It was going to take them eight to ten hours to drive to Idaho, where Zack was living on a farm.

Alec and Max planned to stop and have lunch in the first town they came to, at one o'clock. Alec knew he and Max had good bladders, he wondered if Logan had the same control.

Logan felt bad at having put a tracking device on Max's motorcycle, while she was at work yesterday. He couldn't believe the risks he was taking. It was for Max's own good, he assured himself. His ex-girlfriend might need back up with Zack. Who knew how crazy Zack might get when told the truth?

Logan also needed to see just how intimate Max was with Alec. He remembered how ex wife Valerie had accused him once of being a stalker and how she had only married him in the first place because he hung around her like a bad smell. Logan winced at the memory. Val had been a lousy drunk but she'd laugh righteously if she could see him now.

At lunchtime Max and Alec sat in the summer sun, stretching their legs, enjoying their coffee and burgers. Alec glanced at Max and wondered again whether to bring up the fact he knew about the little charade she had going with Logan.

But he realised there were more important matters at hand, namely, how was he, as a good looking transgenic whom Manticore had designed to be genetically compatible with her, going to get Max stop seeing him as her annoying pal? Though to be fair, Pal was a step up from annoying pain in the butt who had ruined her life.

Did she still see Alec as a brother of sorts, with the accompanying squick factor? His sexual fantasies were back in full swing about her. Though far less depraved than back at Manticore, no more forcing her against her will in the shower block. Now he was imagining her consensually going down on him in a rainstorm in a nice field somewhere. Alec knew instinctively that he and Max would be dynamite in the sack together.

An old lady walked past them with her husband.

"Look at that good looking young couple over there," she croaked in that loud voice of the deaf, "I bet their sex life is amazing."

Alec cracked up. It was as if the old girl had read his mind. He laughed so hard he inhaled a piece of his burger and started to choke. Max slapped him on the back to help him dislodge the food. Alec could see she was equally as amused by the old lady's comment. Alec started to fight for breath and looked vaguely panicked. Max whacked him harder on the back, but couldn't shift the piece of meat patty stuck in his throat.

Alec took a big gulp of his coffee but the meat seemed happy cutting off his air supply. Max pushed her choking friend to his feet and performed the Heimlich manoeuvre on him. The lethal patty shot out of Alec's mouth, onto the ground to be seized by a scavenging duck.

"My god Max ya just saved my life," Alec wheezed, his eyes streaming.

Max released her hold on him and sat back down as if nothing had happened.

"I thought I only pulled that shift on Tuesdays?"

Logan parked his car far away, on the other side of the road. He'd just driven past and seen a glimpse of Max hugging Alec round the stomach as they fooled around. He took out his binoculars.

Alec spotted Logan's car, as well the binoculars, immediately. That was too much. Alec decided to push Logan's buttons.

He took Max's hand in his own and subjected it to close scrutiny.

"Yeah I thought so, calluses from the bike gloves, weird huh?" Alec showed her his hand. "I've got them too."

Max examined his hand.

"I can't see any freakin calluses on either my hand or yours," she told him frankly, dropping his hand, "You're paranoid and kinda vain."

"Yeah," Alec added, "I think your fingers are out of proportion huh, from all that bike riding. Compare 'em to mine."

"What? No way," Max protested indignantly, picking up Alec's hand and comparing their digits.

"It's just because you're male and I'm female," she informed him, dropping his hand once more. "Now are you going to come up with another lame excuse to touch my hand or can I finish my lunch?"

Max and Alec went across to the gas station to refill their bikes. Alec was aware of Logan still watching them with his binoculars. Alec brought a single rose from the store and gave it to Max as she came out of the restroom, shaking her hands.

Paper towels were this month's consumer shortage.

"What's that for?" Max drawled, cocking an eyebrow.

"Saving my life, not just this time, but every time" Alec greased smoothly, "Just a little token of my appreciation. Don't worry, I ain't gettin' all mushy on ya."

Max looked pleased but also a bit embarrassed.

"I'll put it in my pack. Maybe my clothes will smell nice."

Logan saw Alec hand Max a rose and his heart sunk. Why hadn't he given Max flowers?

Max and Alec rode off again and Logan sat in his car fuming, till they were out of sight.

**Part 3**

"Well you have to heat up her up before you put the meat in, Adam," the farmer explained, annoyed at his farm hand's inability to satisfy his wife.

"I didn't know the beef roast would turn out like that," Adam said in apology, "I guess I'm a better farm hand than kitchen hand, Mary. Your oven is not my friend."

The farmer's wife threw potatoes in the roasting pan crossly.

"Oh never mind Adam, it'd just be nice if someone apart from me, could cook around here. Get the phone will you?"

Adam answered the phone. Cooking just wasn't his thing. There wasn't a recipe book in the house either, all the books had been burned in the woodstove for fuel in the great blizzard of 2013.

Adam looked at his boss's wife in amazement.

"It's for me Mary. This girl says she has news about my family and wants to see me out front."

Mary slowly continued to stir cake mixture in a bowl.

"Well I suppose you should go out front and see her then."

Adam shrugged.

"It'll be great I guess, if she does know something about my family. This amnesia has never cleared up."

"No," agreed Mary harshly. Adam could see she was upset and troubled. "Good luck Adam. Go see what she wants."

"Thanks Mary," Adam smiled, "I'll be back in time for that cake I hope."

Adam walked excitedly to the front of the house. Two young people were waiting on motor bikes by the gate.

Adam recognised the Latino woman instantly, he had only seen her once at the hospital but she had featured in so many of his dreams, these weird nightmares he kept having.

The young woman smiled at Adam but looked terrified.

"Zack," she breathed, almost as if not believing he was real, "it's me, Max."

He looked at her, still puzzled; why was she calling him Zack? What was she scared of? Him? The man beside her was looking at Adam sympathetically but warily.

The girl's companion looked familiar too. The stranger pointed to himself and said, "X5 330417291599, I'm X5 331845739494."

The stranger then pointed to Max and said "She's X5 332960073452."

Zack's eyes flickered in recognition.

"That's the number on my neck tattoo."

Zack bit his lip.

"I'm one of those escaped transgenics who've been on the news, aren't I?"

"Yeah," Max answered carefully, "you used to be in my unit."

"I dream about you sometimes," Zack shared hesitantly, "They're never good dreams."

Max, Zack and Alec walked back to Zack's quarters and talked all night. Explaining what had happened and why it had been thought best to send him to the ranch in Idaho.

Zack thought it was the most stupid idea he had ever heard in his life.

"So you're my sister and I died for you and you left me here to farm?"

"Yeah," Alec got in, "About sums it up. I don't go out with her for her brains."

Max glared at Alec. Him suggesting they were a couple to stop Zack wanting to kill Logan had not been her favourite plan of action, but she was so desperate, she was willing to try anything by the time she had reached the ranch.

"I was trying to keep you safe Zack. I didn't want you arrested for Logan's murder," Max explained, trying to justify her actions, "And now I'm going to take you to be with other transgenics in Vancouver."

"Not with you in Seattle," Zack chuckled, bitterly amused, "because this Logan guy is there, right?"

Max nodded ashamedly.

"I keep wondering what apart from your looks, was worth me shooting myself in the head for," Zack mused.

"She was trying to protect you," Alec defended Max reluctantly, "and it worked didn't it?"

Alec looked at Max and smiled affectionately.

"I almost died for her a couple of times. She's worth it once you get to know her."

"It's one in the morning," Zack said tiredly, emotionally exhausted, "Let's get some sleep. You guys take those bunk beds over there?"

The next morning Max awoke at dawn, aware of Zack sitting by her bed and staring at her intently.

"I remember it all now Max," Zack told her, "Don't worry I'm not going to kill Logan."

Max could see he was crying in the morning light.

"The only traitor around here is you," Zack wiped away a tear with an angry hand, "but you're still my sister so I'm not going to kill you either."

"Well that's just swell then," cut in Alec, who had been lying awake listening to them, "I knew this was gonna be a tear jerker X5 family reunion. Promising not to kill Max is real touching," he remarked, getting up and getting dressed.

"So you'll come with us to Vancouver?" Max pleaded with Zack, "I don't know where the others went. But if they turn up at Terminal City I can send them to you."

"Well at least I can make a freaking conscious choice this time," Zack stated flatly.

"Yeah I'll go. It I know Krit and Syl, Canada's probably where they headed anyway. Or did Cale get them papers too, as unpaid garbage sorters in Delaware maybe?"

"They didn't want his help," Max said sadly, "So I don't know where they are."

**Part 4**

"C'mon stop making a fuss," Alec scolded Max, "you know it's inevitable, just unclench your knees and hop on for the ride of your life sweetheart. You'll appreciate being with someone who knows moves you've never dreamt of, little girl."

Logan looked on from his position in the bushes, as Max gave Zack her bike and got on the back of Alec's.

"You're so full of it Alec," Max scoffed, rolling her eyes, "You okay Zack?"

"Good to go Maxie," Zack nodded. After a talk with Mary this morning, Zack had realised Max had done the best she could for him and while he'd never approve, he had forgiven her.

Alec was aware of Logan in the bushes and had hoped he'd noticed him pat Max's ass as they walked out of the farmhouse this morning. Max thought it was for Zack's benefit but Alec had done it for Logan to have something to chew on.

Alec chuckled to himself as he pulled out of the ranch drive enjoying the feel of Max leaning on him. This was turning out to be too much fun.


	3. Chapter 3

_Just want to acknowledge once more my kind beta Flamyz of Ice yet again who is making this all possible. The meat patty choking off air supply line in previous chapter was hers and a couple of others_.

**Part One**

"Look I know it hurts, but stop whining about it would ya?" Alec told Max, holding her firmly round her waist.

"I've just never let anyone do that before," Max said, chewing her bottom lip in agitation.

"Well there's a first time for everything Maxie," Alec remarked, lowering her back on the ground. "C'mon it was inevitable, you know it was going to happen sooner or later, and it's with someone you love and trust isn't it?"

"Yeah," Max admitted, her breasts brushing Alec's chest as she slid down him. "I was scared at first but I think I'm starting to come round to the idea," stepping back.

"Good, because I won that coin toss fair and square back at the Ranch this morning. Zack rides your bike and you ride pillion with me. I'm not changing my mind, no matter how much you whine."

Alec flicked on the light switch and the room lit up. "Good thinking, getting the working lightbulb from the closet for the kitchen area."

"Counter was crawling with African termite. Didn't trust my weight on it," Max said, "Thanks for lifting me."

"Hey, I wanted illumination too. Just because we can see in the dark doesn't mean I like showing off. It's too much like 'lights out' back at Manticore, then they came to you in the dark for tests if you were sick," Alec shook himself. Max knew about that, why relive their happy Manticore childhood memories?

Alec forced himself back to the present.

"You wonder why they built ceilings high like that two centuries ago."

Alec reached into his backpack and brought out a tin of chicken flavored Genetically Engineered peas, a product of Bangladesh. American Farmers protectionism had gone the way of the Dodo years ago.

Max screwed up her nose in disgust. "No baked beans huh?"

"Shelves were empty at the market on Thursday, no beans of any kind, period." Alec opened the tin of G.E. peas with his knife.

The three transgenics had been riding all day and had intended to go through the night but Zack had developed a migraine late in the afternoon and they had had to check into a roadside hotel.

"Zack's been asleep for awhile," Max commented. "I think regaining all of his memory at once, has tired him out." She sat on the floor. "I hope his brain is back to normal."

"Seems to be," Alec heated up the peas on the stove.

"How would you know? You never knew him normal." Max picked at a hole in her jeans.

"Hello! I knew his clone, X5-600 or Lane since we prefer names, back at Manticore. He was even more humorless than Zack the way Sam's even bitchier than you, if that's possible."

Alec tasted the peas and made a face. "Dear God that's disgusting, you try." He held out a spoon.

Max swallowed and made a face, "Foul."

"Yeah it's meant to be chicken. F O W L, god rent a sense of humor some time," Alec joked as Max rolled her eyes yet again, "Maybe Zack will eat it."

Alec looked in his pack again. "I have banana flavored pretzels imported from Cuba, expiry date 2017, a very good vintage."

"Last time I'll let you do rations," Max sat on the floor and ate the pretzels. "What I don't get, is if Sam and I and this X5 Lane and Zack are so similar, why aren't you insane like Ben?"

"Maybe not having constant access to serotoninaffected his brain development, maybe he got hit on the head in a food or fuel riot., Alec shrugged, "I thought Ben was kinda a painful subject for you?"

"It is, but I'm curious about seeing Sam again. I mean clones … that's whack."

Max glanced at him quickly, "I don't see Ben anymore when I look at you, not since we had that talk in my apartment, six weeks ago."

"So you don't see me as a brother?" Alec checked. Damn good news to have that confirmed.

"No I guess not, never did."

Max threw him the pretzels packet. "I'm gonna check on Zack."

Max went in and found Zack still sleeping peacefully in the large bed. She and Alec had made Zack take the room with the double bed on the pretext of his headache and needing space, leaving them the room with two singles. Max covered Zack with a blanket and stroked his hair. Max loved Zack deeply and really was glad to be reunited with him.

Alec stared out the window of their eighteenth century crumbling hotel. He had been waiting for Logan to appear. And here was Cale's car now. Logan must be tracking them somehow.

"Hey Max, I'm just getting some beer, you want some?" Alec offered, as she re-entered the room.

"Yeah, Molson Canadian thanks."

The American brands of beer were a consumer item only drank by the truly desperate now, so dubious their product content since the Pulse.

Alec snuck down stairs and listened as Logan checked in and got the room next to theirs. Too bad this town had only the one hotel. Logan must be worried about being discovered. Alec raised a window and jumped out so he didn't meet Logan in the stairway. He wondered how he might next amuse himself at Logan's expense.

When Alec returned, Zack was up and about, staunchly forcing the G.E. peas down. Max was reading the hotel's fire safety guide out of sheer boredom, seeing Idaho was being run by the religious right and all channels on TV but the state approved frequencies were jammed. Which meant animated bible stories with dancing burning bushes, evangelical preachers and tonight, an endless replay of Mel Gibson's the Passion of Christ.

Alec put the beer gently down on the table, mindful of the African termites and tossed down three huge novels in front of them.

"The biggest they had down in reception folks."

Zack reached for War and Peace. Max grabbed Lord of the Rings. That left for Alec…

"Oh thanks guy," Alec said sarcastically. He flopped onto a couch and started on Scarlett O' Hara's adventures in the Civil War. He could hear Logan moving round in the next room; the walls were thin.

Alec smiled evilly, this was gonna be a walk in the park.

Eventually all the transgenics went to bed. Max changed in the bathroom and requested in combat sign language (so Zack wouldn't know she and Alec weren't a couple) for Alec to do the same.

Alec shook his head and proceeded to peel off his clothes. He refused to act like an Ordinary in front of another transgenic. If it was so terrible for her, Max could shut her eyes.

Max stared at the ceiling, listening to Alec change. She didn't care much if she saw him naked, but it was the principle. They weren't soldiers.

He switched off the light and got into bed. Max could hear him turning on the squeaky bed.

"Damn, nearly forgot."

Alec raised himself off the bed. Crouched on his hands and knees in the middle of his mattress, he began to bang the bed rhythmically against the dividing wall to the next room. His bed springs squeaked and all in all, it made a hell of a racket.

"What the hell are you doing Alec?" Max hissed in the darkness, bewildered.

"Stopping the African termites from chewing the wall in the middle of the night, and keeping us awake. Reception said banging the wall like this, continuously for five minutes stuns them and they won't bother us till dawn," Alec explained softly. "Sorry, I didn't remember earlier."

"It sounds like…" Max stopped self-consciously.

"What, Max?" Alec said innocently in a quiet voice.

"You know exactly what it sounds like!" Max snapped, aware of the amusement hidden in the tone of his voice and trying not to laugh with embarrassment herself.

"Making love?" Alec shook his head teasingly, "You have a filthy mind, little girl."

Max threw 'Lord of the Rings' at him.

She lay in silence for three minutes trying to get to sleep, it was impossible. She sat up and screamed at him.

"My god Alec, I can't take it any more!"

"Ssh you'll wake Zack," Alec scolded her, inwardly glowing with delight. Could she have screamed out a better phrase? "Come over and help me then," He whispered. "Don't worry, I'm wearing my boxers."

"Help you how?" Max hissed.

"Get on this bed and slap the walls with your hands, don't use your fists, you might go through the wall. It won't work on your bed - termites in the legs. Reception warned me, bed might collapse."

Max hopped out of her bed and climbed onto Alec's, kneeling on his pillows. She slapped the walls with her outstretched palms.

"No, lower down Max, apparently that's the heart of the nest," Alec instructed her, still whispering. "This way I've got them from below and you've got them from above, good huh?"

"If you say so," Max said in a low voice. It was only the fact that Alec kept whispering so as not to wake Zack, that was convincing her he was being serious, and not playing some elaborate practical joke on her.

"That's good Maxie," Alec raised his voice slightly in encouragement. "Harder?"

Max slapped the walls with her hands with all her might. She could not believe this, why hadn't Alec remembered to do this earlier?

"No, harder Maxie," Alec called out to her, increasing his rocking of the bed.

Max slapped the walls even harder.

Alec stopped rocking the bed, he'd blow the game if he yelled out 'Oh god' or something dumb like that. Let Logan torture himself wondering why transgenics didn't yell out when they climaxed.

"Thanks Max," Alec said, as she crawled off the bed, "I just hate the sound of insects chewing, y'know?"

"I feel real sorry for whoever's on the other side of that wall," Max yawned.

"Well they didn't tell us to knock it off … maybe they were getting off on it?"

"Ugh, good night."

"Night Maxie," Alec grinned to himself. Logan could hardly have yelled at them to be quiet. Max would have recognized his voice.

Logan had lain in torment in the darkness, the five minutes seeming much longer to him. All he had been able to make out was Max screaming out the words "My god Alec, I can't take it anymore." But the banging and slapping sounds had made the situation next door transparently obvious .

**Part two**

Sam looked at her shift manager in annoyance. She had only managed to get this job last week, cash in hand working as a dish washer. But now the shift manager wanted a private meeting with her. What the hell for? She knew what her sleazy supervisor in San Francisco had wanted 'private meetings' for.

"Look Sam," her manager sighed, not meeting Sam in the eye. "I've got a real hard problem. By the end of the day, I've either got to lay you or Jack off..."

Sam sneered, "Then you're gonna have to jack off asshole, 'cause I'm not screwing you to keep this job."

"No Jack Fraser, the other new guy and lay you off, as in not employ you anymore," the hapless manger explained, going slightly pink.

"Guess I've just made that decision easy for you then, huh?" Sam bit her lip, mentally kicking herself for her paranoia.

"Oh, no, Sam, I just wanted to know if you really wanted the job or not. If you and Jack both do, I'll toss a coin over it. I really can't decide between the two of you. You're both good workers."

The manager put his hands in his pocket defensively. Did he come off like a sexual harasser in the work place or something? Maybe it was his moustache, maybe he should shave it off?

"Thanks, give Jack the job. I think I'll be able to get another one soon," Sam told him.

Sam walked home at the end of her shift. Forty dollars in her pocket. She knew 494 would be waiting outside her door with papers for her and it gave her a sense of empowerment and freedom.

A pity her husband had to leave her, but Sam couldn't really blame him. Sam had married Steve mostly to keep her cover and felt obligated to save him and his son from White's goons. Sam was looking forward to meeting up with transgenics again. Sam had been undercover since 2017 pretending to be someone she wasn't and the stress had taken it's toll. Her habit of smoking for one.

Sam went to her apartment and saw 494 waiting in the corridor with her clone and Lane.

"Lane?" Sam couldn't believe her eyes. She ran up and hugged him. "Shit when I saw that news last May about the Pope's assassination, I thought it was you. 600, I thought you were dead."

Lane looked puzzled, gently pushing her back. "I killed the pope?"

"Sam, sorry," Alec said, looking at her with pity. He knew she had always been fond of Lane. "This is Zack, he's an 09er. Lane is dead. He knew he was being sent on a suicide mission by all accounts."

"Sorry for leaping on you like that," Sam said coldly to Zack. "So you brought my papers Freck?"

"Yeah," said Alec. "And remember, it's Alec now, or go back to 494."

"Sorry 'Alec'."

Sam looked at her new papers aghast. "You're fucking kidding me 494!"

"Now Sammie," Alec said reasonably to her, "What could be more your scene, than as an experienced geriatric care giver after that sham marriage of yours to that Ordinary. How old was he again?"

"Forty," Sam slapped him on the arm, irritated. "As you well know, seeing as how it was the first thing you asked Steve, and then asking him how old he thought I was."

Max watched their exchange in fascination. Was that how she looked when _she_ ragged on Alec?

Sam spun round and turned on Max. "What the hell's with the staring 452 Take a picture, it'll last longer."

"Nothing, I was waiting to take you to meet up with the other transgenics like you wanted," Max told her scary clone. "If you still want to?"

"Yeah, I need to be with my own kind, drives me crazy being out with Ordinaries," Sam replied, "Who are they?"

"A nine year old X8 called Bugler , two female sixteen year old X6s, Ralph and Fixit, two seventeen year old male X6s, Bullet and Zero, and X5 692 Biro. He's twenty-three."

"Apparently, they're living in a big old house with room for you and Zack," Max explained to Sam.

**Part three**

The handsome X5 Max had rescued from exposure to a deadly transgenic pathogen, looked at his young roommate with high emotion.

"No Ralph, you're too young," Biro told her, pushing her away violently. "I won't do it."

"Fourteen is the legal age of consent here and I'm sixteen," Ralph strode towards him and leapt over the couch. "Don't be silly Biro, don't fight me on this. I'm X6, I'm as strong as you are."

Biro leapt over the couch the other way. "No, you'll just have to wait till you're old enough, by American standards that's eighteen Ralph."

"You're a patronizing X5 pig. We're in Canada now."

Ralph dived over the couch and tackled Biro. She landed on his chest and they wrestled furiously, panting.

"Don't be stupid Biro," Ralph told him, her pert young breasts heaving, her face flushed, her long blonde hair hanging loose around her shoulders. "I know you want it too. So why are you denying us this opportunity to get what we both want?"

Biro looked up at her and gasped as her hands jerked at the waistband of his jeans. She had him pinned down so he couldn't escape. Ralph felt frantically for the tell tale bulge in his jeans. She seized upon it's long, hard, smoothness with triumph.

"Hah ha, got it!" Ralph danced a dance of victory, waving the remote in the air. "Yeah baby! That means I pick the sports channel, seeing as it's my name on the contract and my wages contributing to the pay TV as well."

"Okay, you win Ralph. Just turn on the basketball, will ya? We've already missed five minutes fooling around huh," Biro picked up himself off the floor and sat on the couch.

"I'm going with Murdoch news, like I said I wanted in the first place." Ralph turned on the television and sat beside him.

"You would."

Biro and Ralph's heads turned at the knocking coming from their front door.

"Oh crap." Biro got up to see who it was.

Biro and Ralph welcomed Zack and Sam into their home gladly. They explained the others were out at a park and would be back soon.

Alec watched Sam unpack her things. "You think you'll be okay here Sammie?" he checked.

Sam nodded. "Yeah at least I won't die alone. Come on Freck. It's not looking good. What with White wanting us all dead."

"Nah," Alec squatted down. "Hey you remember Max's ex boyfriend, Logan?"

"The stalker, yeah what about him?" Sam asked, kneeling as she unpacked her suitcase.

Alec smirked, he'd guessed Sam hadn't been impressed by Logan. "Could you help me out with something, for old time's sake 453?"

AN: Lane actually existed in official Dark Angel back plot. Read official tie in _Eyes Only Dossier_ and was indeed killed assassinating the pope.


	4. Chapter 4

_AN: This chapter very kindly beta by Flamyzofice. Who had been herocially struggling with internet problems. Thank you Flamyz!_

**Part One **

Laughing like lunatics, Alec and Max ran round the overgrown garden of the old ram shackle house in Vancouver. Max shrieked hysterically as Alec chased her round the empty flowerbeds with a tea towel, the setting sun casting their figures as silhouettes.

It was a chilly early evening and they were wearing their motorcycle jackets, long sleeved black t-shirts and jeans. Almost looking like matching transgenic Ken and Barbie dolls, Logan thought disgustedly behind his binoculars, as the journalist spied on them from across the street.

Max ducked behind the garden's one tree, Alec dragged her away playfully by the wrists as she still screamed with laughter. Logan reflected sadly that he would never have had the strength to overpower Max like that. Not that Logan had needed to of course.

The whole scene was rather immature Logan thought to himself nastily. But then Max and Alec were only twenty and twenty one after all and Logan was a mature thirty three year old divorced man. Who shouldn't have fallen in love with a twenty year old in the first place, Logan reminded himself sensibly. He told his sensible side to lie down and go back to sleep.

Alec picked Max up by the waist and hung her upside down. Screeching like an amused Banshee Max struggled frantically, as Alec put the tea towel down her back. She slid down in his arms and they started to kiss each other gently on the lips.

Logan felt sick, somehow it seemed to have all the magic and romance of a first kiss for them both. The two transgenics broke apart and looked at each other wonderingly for a moment as if seeing each other for the first time. As if they were the north and south poles of separate magnets, the pair leaned towards each other again, for a much harder, more passionate kiss. Logan was feeling physically ill. He had heard the sound effects of the vigorous lovemaking they had shared the night before and now this late twilight evening Logan had to witness the sexual chemistry evident between them.

What was Logan doing? He had turned into a stalker for no reason, Max had obviously moved on. How much longer was Logan going to torment himself?

But what was this? Max suddenly broke away from Alec, a look of utter misery on her face. She burst into tears and ran into the house crying. Logan felt like punching the air with joy. Max was obviously still in love with him.

**Part two**

Sam ran up the stairs sobbing. The sound of someone pulling the bath plug in the bathroom could be heard. Sam ran into the room Max was sleeping in tonight. Her body shaking with gut wrenching sobs, Sam clumsily took off the jacket she had borrowed from Max for the little charade, throwing it back on her bed.

Wiping her eyes Sam came out of Max's room and saw Alec leaning on the wall by the landing worried about her.

"Are you okay Sammie?" he asked

Alec could hear the sound of the hairdryer going in the bathroom as well as gurgling water down the plug hole. Bugler was playing the Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy on his bugle, in the room next door to the bathroom. Thank God, Max probably couldn't hear this conversation

"You said no tongues," Sam accused him angrily, starting to cry again.

"Sammie, you came onto me," Alec told her frankly. He held out his arms. Shaking like a leaf, Sam rushed into them, sobbing hysterically.

"What have I done, what have I done with my life for the last three years?" Sam sobbed on Alec's shoulder. His arms embraced her caringly. "I never loved him, Freck. I let Steve touch me, screw me, plotting to kill him if necessary, for eighteen months…"

"Sam, Sam. You did what you had to survive, alright, we all did." Alec stroked her hair affectionately. "Shush, shush."

Zack came up the stairs, he had been lying down in his new room with another headache. The sound of Sam's sobbing making him get up instinctively, Sam sounded so like Max.

"Is she alright?" Zack checked with Alec, concerned. This hard brittle girl with Max's face, crying like a lost child? Zack felt extremely disturbed and confused by the feelings caused him by Sam's crying.

"Manticore moment," Alec explained to Zack casually, patting Sam soothingly on the back automatically. "We've all been having them at T.C."

Max came out of the bathroom wearing only a threadbare towel. Zack regarded Max dispassionately. Alec was too busy comforting a Sam who grew more hysterical by the minute, to do more than nod briefly at Max.

Max wondered what the hell was going on out on the landing. Sam must be having a Manticore moment, she guessed correctly. Max went into the room she was sharing with Fixit to change. Funny she didn't remember leaving her jacket on the bed. And Fixit was out doing her night shift at the local supermarket. Someone must have shifted it for some reason, odd.

It was peculiar seeing Sam crying in Alec's arms like that. Max didn't like it and couldn't work out why. She couldn't be jealous? That would be pathetic, after all what was Alec to Max, just her friend, as he was obviously Sam's. Max's feelings were not only confusing, but also irritating her. She had just spent the past two years of her life being confused about Logan, Max would not taking kindly to the grief and hassle of now wigging out about Alec.

Alec led a calmed down Sam down to the kitchen and poured her a glass of water. Sam gulped it down.

"Do you feel okay now?" he asked, looking around the kitchen. There were no paper towels or tissues for Sam to blow her nose on. Obviously British Columbia was having paper towel shortage problems too. Sam sniffed, then wiped her nose on the back of her sleeve.

"I've got snot all over your jacket Freck," Sam apologized to him.

"Hey it's leather, it will wipe off."

Alec brushed at his jacket with the receipt he'd got from the liquor store the other night, to show Sam the easy care properties of his jacket. "It was dumb of me huh? Your Bonnie to my Clyde just to prank Logan?"

"No, it was sorta fun. Sorry I screwed up the mission, as it were."

Sam drank more water. Her hands trembling as she lit a cigarette. "So when you were kissing me out in the garden, were you kissing me, or pretending I was Max in your mind?"

"I'm not sure huh," Alec looked apologetic. "I'm kinda confused right now. I think I was kinda kissing you both at the same time."

"Fair. I think I was trying to relive an end of night prom kiss or something, trying to recreate what we both should have experienced as teenagers but never did," Sam shook her head ruefully and drew on her cigarette. "I'm just confused right now about stuff too."

"Weren't you sweet on Lane? Back in Manticore?" Alec asked her carefully.

"Yes, pretty much," Sam admitted, exhaling smoke upwards. "But because Lane was my unit mate as kids, he didn't return my unspoken adolescent yearnings."

"Yeah, well Zack was in love with Max. I had the biggest crush on you back in Manticrap and now I'm in…find Max kinda hot." Alec leaned on the table tensely, tracing patterns with his finger on the wood grain. "I think Max was attracted to 493 when she met him again as an adult. But she'll never admit it."

"So we're all fucked in the head. Tell me something I don't know." Sam told him flicking the ash into the ashtray viciously. Thank god Zero smoked as well. Sam couldn't have handled moving into a non-smoking household at present. "What's your point?"

"Do you think Manticore was planning to have us four males fight it out over both you and Max at some point? Or is it all just freakin' coincidence huh?" Alec wondered, glancing up at her.

"Ijust don't know Freck, but it's confusing isn't it?" Sam remarked, stubbed her cigarette out.

"What's confusing?" Max came into the kitchen, looking for a knife.

"Nothing that concerns you, Max," Sam said coldly. "What are you looking for?"

"Nothing that concerns you, Sam," Max mimicked sharply, pulling open a cutlery drawer. She rummaged through it and pulled out a sharp carving knife. Perfect, she thought, walking out of the kitchen and then paused.

"Where does 'Freck' come from?" Max asked Alec curiously, holding the knife in her hand like a transgenic Lady Macbeth. For some reason it had been preying on her mind, when she was in the bathtub.

Alec hunched his shoulders, embarrassed. He looked pleadingly at Sam.

Sam relit another cigarette. "That's none of your frickin business either. Don't let the door hit you on your way out Max. This is a private conversation."

Alec breathed a sigh of relief. Good old Sammie was back to her usual cheerful self.

Max wandered back into the living room and sat in a battered armchair patiently waiting. A skittering noise by the fireplace drew her eyes. Like a lightning strike, Max threw from the shoulder, impaling the rat she had spotted earlier.

It gave a horrid squeak and then died gratifyingly. Max hated rats, although as an early adolescent on the run just after the Pulse hit, she had appreciated them as dinner.

Bugler came into the room looking for her. "Whatcha doing Max?" the nine year old asked.

Max threw the dead animal out of the window, "Rat killing."

"Oh. Bullet got thirteen last week eh." Bugler curled up in the armchair, a frown on his young face; it was very cute. Max noted that after ten months in Vancouver, Bugler now sounded completely Canadian.

"What's up short stuff? Something on your mind?" Max asked him, sterilizing the knife blade in the open fireplace.

"I'm worried Max." He paused. "I'm kinda confused. What do you do if someone you really liked, was doing a bad thing?" Bugler wanted to know.

"To you?" Max shot back immediately, her protectiveness getting the better of her .

"No, to the world. Well, Vancouver anways," Bugler said, lookingup at her with worry.

Max went over to him and put her arm round his shoulder. She was good with kids, especially boys. Alec had teased her about this, said it was because Max didn't have a feminine bone in her body.

"Tell me and maybe I can help you."

"I think Ralph is an arsonist, and is planning to set fire to us all in our beds," Bugler confessed.

"Why do you think that little man?" Max queried, having really not seen that one coming.

"It's kinda weird, eh? I heard Ralph come into the living room when I was in the kitchen earlier tonight. Biro was there and he said to her, "Gonna set Vancouver alight in that get up huh?' Then Ralph said, 'Yeah hoping to create a few sparks. Have you been feeling the heat Biro?' and he said in this real mean voice. 'You're a hell of a self destructive kid. Play with matches little girl, and you're gonna get burned.' And then she laughed and said to him. 'I enjoy making things burn.' Then I couldn't hear any more talking, they sounded like they were struggling, probably over her fire lighting equipment. Then he said. 'I'm not getting freakin' involved in any of this, you're too young baby.' She laughed in this fake way, y'know and said, 'It's too late Biro. You'll be all alone in your little bed tonight, but when I get back, you'll be on fire because of me and you know it.' Then I heard the front door bang."

Bugler looked up at an incredulous Max. "See? She's obviously an arsonist eh?. Ralph's always burning dinner when it's her turn to cook too."

Oh no, Max groaned inwardly, Ralph and Biro? This was so not good. The X6 must have started her heat cycle. Damn Manitcrap for having males outnumber the females three to two.

**Part three**

Logan took out his audio amplifier, waving it around expertly until he could hear Max and Alec's voices round their camp fire that evening. Logan had purchased the device in an electronics goods discount store in Vancouver, earlier that morning so he could hear the pair's conversations from now on.

Max and Alec couldn't be stopping for dinner. They had eaten two hours ago in Vancouver with Zack and co. Logan had watched them through the un-curtained kitchen window with his binoculars. They had held hands occasionally but that was it. Logan had to know what was happening between them; he recognized itas a full blown obsession now, but he couldn't stop himself.

He had started to listen in on the Vancouver household's boring transgenic in-fight, caused by Ralph and Biro sleeping together. But Sam and Max screaming at each other at the top of their lungs had just made Logan want to turn the sound down.

Still, it had been gratifying hearing the results. Alec had tried to step in and both females had turned on him in unison and told Alec to shut the hell up.

Now Max and Alec were heading back to Seattle but for some unknown reason had stopped and made camp. Or was it unknown, Logan tortured himself, were they going to have make up sex?

From where Logan was hiding in his car he couldn't see them, but he could finally hear their conversation. Only now he found his being a cheap skate coming back to bite him in the ass; the equipment was inferior as to quality and he'd been fiddling and banging the damn thing for the past ten minutes trying to get it to work properly.

Alec's voice suddenly came in loud and clear, he heard the younger man instruct Max. "No move your tongue to the left, higher, circle it. Yeah, like that, you got it."

Logan's heart sank; this wasn't what he wanted to eavesdrop on. Damn, and he kept getting the sound of the fire crackling.

The he heard Max say, "It hurts, Alec."

"Stop being a baby, put it in your mouth and suck." Alec ordered callously.

How could Max allow herself to be spoken to like that? wondered Logan. Perhaps he should have been a macho pig too? Would she still be with him if he'd treated her like some kind of inferior sex worker?

"Oh," Max sighed rapturously with her mouth full. Logan felt ill again. "Oh god, Alec it tastes so good."

Crackle, crackle; inferior Indonesian crap! Logan thumped the listening device on his dashboard. Ouch, feedback whistled through the car. It took him a good five minutes to fix the problem.

"It's all over your face again, Max. Lick it off."

"My tongue's getting tired."

"That's a first, huh?"

Crackle, crackle.

"Been great, a real treat Alec –" Crackle, crackle. "…to me. But we have to head back."

"Yeah. Or we could get back on our bikes and head east. Ever been to New York?"

"Don't tempt me, Alec."

Logan heard the motorbikes kick up again and his tracking device start beeping on his monitor screen.

Back to Emerald City they went.

Max felt her heart sinking as they drew closer to Seattle, back to her myriad of problems with the transgenics, White on her tail, a guilt tripping Logan and Normal on her back.

New York with Alec was an alluring alternative. Max contemplated it for a few minutes. No demands, cat burglary once a month to fund a comfortable life style. They were good as a team, her and Alec, when they were focused on a mutual goal.

He'd probably want to sleep with her if she went to New York with him. If Max was honest with herself she knew Alec wanted to sleep with her now, had done for a long while.

Max eyed the male behind her in her wing mirror. What would it be like to go to bed with someone who was the same as her? Someone she didn't have to hold back with, for fear of giving herself away or hurting them, accidentally.

Alec had been out of town when the first heat after she got back from Manticore, struck, and had therefore missing the nine day wonder of her getting with Rafer again. The paramedic had enjoyed the three day fuckfest, then gone back to his 'on again off again' girlfriend, saying she was less 'intense than Max', whatever the hell that meant.

The last time Max had gone into heat was two months ago. Fortunately it had had happened over a long weekend and she had spent the time in a cheap motel with an Austrian backpacker named Dietrich who, thank God, didn't speak much English.

It was two months before her next heat was due. Max didn't want to think what, or who'd she do next time. She knew Alec would never judge her for it, just like Logan didn't. Oh God Logan, why did she have to see him again?

Max played word games with her self for distraction, trying to work out why 'Freck' had been Alec's childhood nickname and why he wanted to keep it from her.

'Freak-out, Frechet Algerbra? It was probably from Freccia, the Italian armored tank unit they had to learn about as kids in Manticore.' Max decided. 'So what was the big secret?'

Alec checked his mirror occasionally, getting a glimpse of Logan every ten miles or so. He had hoped Logan would give up but he had to hand it to the guy: he was persistent at the very least.

Alec was glad Logan hadn't been spying on them when he and Max had cooked s'mores round the camp fire, a little treat he had sprung on her.

Eating the toasted marshmallows between chocolate smeared graham crackers had been messy but fun. Max had burnt her finger in her greedy haste. Alec had got the graham crackers in Seattle, chocolate in Vancouver and marshmallow in Idaho. Alec had gone to a fair bit of trouble to arrange the surprise for Max when he thought about it. He supposed it was another definite indication he was in love with her. That was about the only thing this weekend Alec was feeling less confused about.


	5. Chapter 5

Confused much 5

_AN I posted this four days ago but how funny it didn't load or something. How wack._

_Thank you, thank you to Flaymz of Ice for being my Beta on this chapter. She had a lot of computer problems but still did my story._

**Part One**

"No Mole, stroke there, yeah, again, that's good, that's very good," panted Joshua excitedly.

"It's kinda messy Joshua, the way you like it," Mole grunted.

"Sloppy yes, but good," Joshua growled happily, holding Mole by the wrist, guiding him through the motions.

"Yeah it's good, I could do without the brown shit getting on my trousers though," Mole complained.

"Not brown shit Mole, Sienna Brown." Joshua corrected.

"Oh, okay Sienna Brown," Mole conceded, putting his tube of oil paint down. "So what shall I call this painting then?"

"Mole number one," Joshua suggested.

Both transgenic looked at Mole's first artwork approvingly.

Their heads turned as Max and Alec walked into the control room.

"Hey guys, miss us?" Alec called out, "we brought back presents huh."

Max pulled out medical supplies from her backpack, reeling them off as she went, "Surgical thread, bandages, rubber gloves etc, etc."

"Great," Mole remarked, going over to check out the new supplies, careful to avoid getting paint on them. "You guys fix up your Unit Mates in Vancouver okay?"

"Yeah," Max answered, "What's been happening down here?"

Mole filled her in, and Alec went to bed. Unlike Max, who only needed four hours of rest since Manticore fixed her sleep patterns, he needed six hours to function at his best.

Alec wondered what pain in the ass job at Jam Pony, he and Max would have to do tomorrow. They were bound to land suckful delivery jobs this week, as part of Normal's petty punishment for them taking Monday off.

Of course everyone at Jam Pony was going to think they were a couple now for going away to Vancouver together. Max was digging herself a bigger hole every day, Alec chuckled to himself.

**Part two**

"I hear she works part time as a pole dancer in a strip bar, and she gave him a topless lap dance once," Greta gossiped with Druid and Sky, as they rummaged through their lockers. Normal had threatened to do a drugs check that morning. "Maybe that's when they first got it on."

"Nah," Sketchy said "She only held that gig down for a month, to get parts for her bike,"

Druid put them right. "I heard they spent the night together after she busted him out of prison for pushing Andie. Maybe that's when they hooked up."

"No, guys. This is the real deal," Sky whispered in a low voice. "They've been screwing each other for months, ever since Max came back from her "heart surgery" nine months ago. Alec was a hospital orderly there or something."

"So you think they did at the hospital?" Greta squealed with delight, "While she was still in bed maybe?"

"Could have, I wouldn't put it past them. Wouldn't put it past Alec, that's for sure. The guy was a total dog when he first started working here, remember? Damn near worked his way round every chick in Jam Pony," Sky reminded them.

The three Jam Pony Employees made room for CeCe at the lockers.

"Oh hey, CeCe," Druid smiled welcomingly, concealing his mild hots for her. "You look tired pal."

"Hey," CeCe greeted, trying not to crack up in front of them. God they had it all so wrong.

"Hey, have you heard the latest?" Sky inquired, pocketing a herbal substance he didn't use for religious purposes.

"What, Max and Alec are an item?" CeCe wondered, removing some transgenic gun running evidence of her own.

"Yeah, but not that," Druid corrected. "Normal has all you chicks on the Moto-pony run doubling up with a guy today. There's some serial rapist been reported attacking girls on motorcycles this week."

"Probably one of those Manticore freaks that have been on the news," Greta scowled.

"Probably a run of the mill rapist," CeCe suggested, shutting her locker, "Haven't we all got places to be?"

Everyone else at Jam Pony had in fact also presumed Alec and Max were now an item, thanks to their shared long weekend. Alec could sense Normal's approval of him had lessened because of it.

CeCe told Alec later that morning how she'd caught their boss looking at Alec's personal file, moping, on Saturday afternoon.

"It was disturbing, Freck," CeCe admitted, stretching her arms and yawning.

"Alec now remember? Or would you like me to remind everyone at T.C. what CeCe was originally short for?" Alec threatened, slapping his retrieved parcels down on the dispatch desk.

"Sorry 'Alec'. Must cramp your style huh?" CeCe teased as they headed to the bathrooms together. "Having everyone here thinking you and Max are together?"

"Nah, I swore off Ordinaries some months back. They're so ordinary. Especially the chicks in this place, what the hell did Greta get another piercing for huh?" Alec remarked dismissively of his female co-worker. "How come you're so tired anyway?"

"Went on an arms gathering in Korea town with Biggs and Tyrol, y'know, 418?" CeCe yawned again.

"Don't let Max know," Alec warned her. "You know she's got a stick up her ass about fire arms."

CeCe laughed, "You're so whipped." Stifling another yawn she added "We're gonna need those guns, she'll see that. One of us just needs to die. We had a narrow escape yesterday."

"How come?"

"That X5, Gem, who gave birth last night? She and the X6 kid she came with were in a van with Mole . He rear ended someone, coulda got nasty, you know how hot tempered he is. Lucky us, Biggs was on hand to smooth it over."

"Close call," Alec whistled, breathing a sigh of relief. He paused at the men's restroom door. "Well, gotta blaze, me and Max got a run downtown."

Alec thought about CeCe's comment as he and Max headed into the business district half an hour later. Whipped, him? No way.

He watched Max carefully as they rode the elevator to one of the upper floors. She was so beautiful, so perfect and whenever she smiled at him, which Max frequently did these days, his heart always beat slightly faster. She must have realized he was in love with her.

The blonde receptionist told them to wait in the lobby. The law firm's photocopier had run out of toner and it would be a while before the documents the couriers needed to deliver, would be ready.

"Make yourselves some coffee," the receptionist offered, fluttering her eyelashes at Alec. "Staff lounge is down the hall."

Alec glanced at a painting on the wall in the employees' room. "That's a genuine Warhol, one of his earlier works," He pointed out to Max, "It's worth thousands."

"Yeah, right," Max agreed, scrutinizing it appraisingly. "You specializing in modern art now?"

"Since Joshua's foray into the postmodern art movement and resulting cash cow, I've been doing some research," Alec replied offhandedly, examining the painting with an eye closed, taking it in. "Not his best period."

"Guess we really could've had it sweet in New York together huh?" Max ventured, handing him a coffee, made just the way he liked it. She couldn't help remembering things like that, Manticore made sure she remembered everything.

"We make a great team, Max," Alec commented, sipping his coffee. "Hey everyone at Jam Pony thinks we're a couple by the way. I'm putting them correct on it obviously, nothing worse than having people think something of you that's not true." 'Come on Max,' he thought smugly, 'confess, it must be killing you.'

"Alec," Max mumbled. She couldn't take deceiving him anymore. "I told Logan we were going out, to get him off my back." She met his gaze, "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, I know. I overheard you telling O.C.," Alec told her, "I was bummed out for a while there, but I'd do anything for you Maxie, you know that?"

Alec shuddered internally; that sounded whipped even to his ears.

He supposed it was his turn to come clean. Suddenly things didn't seem quite as amusing as they had at the time. "Didja know Logan was following us all through Idaho and British Columbia? He put a tracking device on your bike. Dix found it this morning."

"What?"

Max was silent for a moment , thinking about things that had happened on their road trip. Quite abruptly, she looked up, her eyes accusing.

"You knew, you knew, didn't you?" she asked, not waiting for an answer, "You manipulating asshole, was that what the African termites were about? And the rose?"

To think she still had that stupid rose. A keepsake of their friendship. What a moron she had been .

"Yeah," Alec conceded cautiously, "you're pissed at me again, right ?"

Alex sighed and put his coffee mug in the dishwasher. Why had he not told her about Logan soon as he knew? Why had he screwed up again?

"Why didn't you just freakin' tell me?" Max demanded, sitting on a table, swinging her legs agitatedly.

"I don't know…You just seemed kinda happy for once and I didn't want to spoil your mood." Alec shoved his hands in his pockets and stared out the window at the island dotted Puget Sounds. It sounded lame but had made sense at the time.

"Why, cause I'm such a scary bitch?" Max asked him, hurt.

"Nah, that's Sam. I just wanted you to relax. As much as you could bailing Zack from his Old MacDonald existence anyway."

Alec heard her rinse her mug out. "I did enjoy the thought of pushing Logan's buttons, I admit."

"Why?"

"Because…" he trailed off. Alec didn't see how he could say 'because I'm jealous that you still love Cale.'

The receptionist came in before Alec had a chance to say anything else, gushing apologetically, "the documents are all ready now folks. Sorry about the delay."

"Good," Max said curtly, slamming her cup into the dishwasher, "I'm more than ready to go."

Damn Alec, making her think he was her friend. He had used her, used her to facilitate the little mind games he played with Logan, used her for his own childish kicks. Alec and Logan were as bad as each other. Max didn't know who she felt more betrayed by.

She honestly thought Alec was a friend; she trusted him. And he didn't bother telling her Logan was following her. Bastard, she wouldn't make that stupid mistake again, her and Alec's relationship was back to square one as far as she was concerned.

**Part three**

"No Dalton," Gem explained patiently, stroking baby Eve's back as she breastfed her, " You've been a real help since we got out of Manticore, but you're too young for this kind of commitment."

"But Gem, I'm mature for my age," fourteen year old Dalton pleaded with her.

"Yeah and that night in the cabin in Oregon, when we were snowed in, and you helped me when I thought I was miscarrying, you were a tower of strength. But you're too young for me to accept this proposal."

"But I got the ring," Dalton said, showing her, "It cost a lot. A hundred on top of my own dough the other X6s passed the hat round for me."

"And it looks amazing, but no," Gem tried to let him down gently.

"Gem, please, I want to help you and Eve. I want to be there for you both," Dalton begged.

"No, Dalton. You may not enter the Seattle Stadium cage fight on Sunday and that is my final word on the subject as your superior officer."

Gem adjusted Eve on her breast, "if you want to help, pass over my nursing pads."

Dalton tucked the boxing ring, booking form away inside his threadbare pocket, and sulkily passed Gem's baby bag to her, "it isn't the same."

"I know pal," Gem soothed. The tired young transgenic mother looked down at her baby, and smiled. "I think this little girl is finally asleep. Now if everything can just stay quiet round here…"

Right on cue, like a bad fairy at a christening, Max came storming into the X5 and 6 communal living area. She slammed her backpack loudly on a table and emptied out cans of Bangladeshi G.E. goat flavored lentils.

Gem and Dalton looked on, intrigued, as Alec came slouching in angrily after her.

"Just leave me the hell alone," Max ordered, putting the tins away in the cupboard.

Seething, Alec emptied his own back pack of nearly expired sauerkraut jars onto the blameless table.

Gem and Dalton made a face at each other; yuck, what disgusting food.

A jar of sauerkraut nearly rolled off the table top, but Alec shot a hand out and caught it in time.

"Oh yeah, great! Break the jars why don't you? Because standing in a queue with you for a half an hour just to get'em, was so much fun too!" Max screeched at him.

"Nothing's broken Max," Alec replied shortly, slamming the jars viciously onto the shelves.

"Not yet." Max slammed the lentil cans away in turn, "But you break everything sooner or later, don't you? Girls' hearts, people's friendships."

"Don't take the moral high ground with me Max, you lied first," Alec snapped.

"I was protecting Logan. I have to go over there now and find out why he acted the way he did."

"Yeah, kiss and make up why don't you?" Alec paused for effect and then smiled coldly, "Oh that's right, you can't."

Max fumed, provoked beyond endurance. She swung her ungloved palm with all her might and slapped Alec's face.

The distinctive sound of flesh meeting flesh, caught everyone's attention in the communal area. Everyone went silent and turned their attention to the fighting couple. This could prove more entertaining than television.

Alec wondered whether to slap her back, or say something utterly unforgivable. The latter won.

"Yeah, you like not being able to fall into his arms." He paused, "the virus isn't a problem, it's an excuse." Alec considered her arrogantly. "You're frigid, so it's safe with Logan, isn't it?" he moved forward so he was in her face. "Otherwise you'd think with that temporary cure five months ago, you would have managed to screw the guy."

He hoped she was hurt. "Not spend the supposedly precious time you two had, in a car, with gossamer snot all over you, and me in the back seat."

Infuriated to the point of insanity, Max slapped him hard once more.

"I'm warning you Maxie," Alec said quietly before his voice rose in emphasis. "Don't slap me again. I could take you any day of the week; I know to guard my groin since you're such a ball breaking bitch!"

"Bring it on," Max snarled, her fists clenched. She caught sight of the time. "Bring it on later," she amended feebly. "I got places to be."

"To sort things out with your precious boyfriend?" Alec laughed sarcastically, closing his back pack so forcefully he broke the zipper. "Give him my regards huh?"

"Go fuck yourself, asshole," and with that parting endearment Max left the room.

Part four 

"You're a strong, wonderful woman," O.C. said to Max over a drink that evening in Crash. "A woman I've developed strong feelings for over the time we've known each other. And I was wondering if you'd like to take our friendship beyond just friends."

O.C. stared expectantly at Max. "So, what do you think Boo?"

"I don't think CeCe will buy it. Sorry O.C., she's pretty het. We all are, maybe Manticore designed us that way on purpose," Max remarked, sipping her beer.

"Damn, that girl is so fine," O.C. frowned, the words she had been rehearsing sounding lame even to her. She drained her beer, shooting her friend a questioning glance.

"Y'aight Max? Only, you all kinds a moody tonight. And it seems like more'n just telling Logan to keep his toys off your wheels. What is it? Alec?"

Max glared at Alec, drinking in another corner with Biggs, Tyrol and Sketchy. Alec met her furious gaze he had been watching her on the down low all evening. It was his suggestion Biggs and company head here. Alec raised his glass to her insolently. Max felt like running across the bar and tipping the beer all over his big head. Then breaking the empty pitcher on top of his traitorous skull.

"Could I care less about the jerk," Max lied, "Anyway, gotta jet. I'll catch you later OC."

Max rode over to Logan's, her jaw set grimly. The two checkpoints she was stopped at, Max actively hoped the sector police would pick a fight with her. Then she could have the pleasurable satisfaction of smacking someone's head in and kicking them in the back afterwards.

By the time she arrived at Logan's she was in a state. She raised her fist and pounded on Logan's door.

Logan opened the door quickly.

"Max…"

"You put a tracking device on my bike and followed me all round Idaho and the freakin' Frozen North!" Max stated angrily, stepping inside.

"Yeah, I wanted to make sure you were safe with Zack," Logan defended. "I know you had Alec but..."

"But you had to stalk me?" Max accused impatiently. "Look it's my fault Logan, I'm always round here looking for your help. It's not fair on you."

"Hey, I've always got your back Max," Logan said quickly.

"Yeah with binoculars huh? But we're over. I'm with Alec now."

"But is Alec who you really want Max? Who you really need? I saw you kissing in the garden in Vancouver and then you started crying."

Logan looked at her puzzled, "Does he really make you happy…? I mean if I've got it wrong..."

Sam! Alec had kissed Sam in Vancouver. Max realized why her jacket had been moved on the bed now, and was swept anew with fury.

"You've got it wrong."

Max began to walk out the front door, "Logan, leave me alone. I've told you before, we're over. I don't love you anymore Logan." She couldn't bear to utter another untruth and tell him she'd never loved him. There was too much lying going on around her already.

Max rode home and waited at a set of traffic lights in a deserted street. There were no other cars in sight. No hover-drones, maybe she should just run it? She wasn't in a particularly law abiding mood anyway.

A male walked out of a shadowy recess in the building beside the stop lights, and came up to her, gun in hand.

Max looked at him, delighted. The serial rapist! Maybe God did occasionally hear her prayers.

"Do you want me in that deserted alley with you?" Max suggested eagerly.

"Uh, yeah," the rapist answered with a frown. He was very confused. Was his victim hiding a smile? "Um, bitch."

"I'm very scared," Max said hastily. Sensing the rapist's hesitation she tried to sound terrified, "Look at me, I'm trembling. Please, don't hurt me."

The rapist felt back in control. "Just do what I say you filthy little whore and I might let you live." He gestured to the alley with his gun.

Max walked into the alley, trying not to skip with joy.

The rapist joined her, unbuckling his jeans. "Right, on your knees, bitch."

"Change of plans." Max knocked the gun out of his hands. "Let's see you, on your knees, bitch."

Max proceeded to beat the low life to a bloody pulp. It felt good. And to think some people played squash to relieve tension; they were so misguided. Max reflected, as she got back onto her bike. Why, she was now feeling very calm and had a sense of inner peace once more.


	6. Chapter 6

_AN: Many thanks again to Flamyz of Ice for being my beta on this one many witty lines are hers._ Part one 

Quietly he entered unseen into Max's bedroom. Max was too busy concentrating on what she was doing on the bed to notice him.

He sensed her, he smelled her, he couldn't resist staying away from her another second. All his instincts were telling him to sink his mouth on the back of her neck. Biting her bar code gently. He was so close, he poised above the bed, then dived on top of her.

Max slapped the back of her neck. Yuck, it was one of those horrible mutant mosquitoes, so prevalent in Seattle after global warming. Even the male mosquito of the species drank blood. If only America had signed the Kyoto protocol in the early years of the twenty first century.

Max clothes were strewn on the bed. She had two boxes labeled 'to keep' and 'give away' at the foot of her bed. She stood in front of them, confused, hands on hips, pondering her wardrobe. How many black singlet tops really, did one transgenic female bike courier need?

Alec walked into her room, bottle of whiskey in hand, and shut the door behind him. It was twelve midnight .

"Whatcha doing?" he asked curiously. Was she leaving again? Please don't let her be leaving again.

"Offloading useless crap from my life," Max answered, gathering all said black singlet tops and putting them in the 'to keep' box. "Which brings me quite nicely to, what the hell do you want?"

"I'm not here to apologize," Alec wanted to make very clear.

"You kissed Sam in Vancouver," Max stated blankly, "Did you sleep with her too?" she wanted to know, still pissed off about the prank played at Logan's expense. Max was also confused as to her jealousy, at her clone being unfortunate to have to kiss the perpetual pain in her ass; why the hell would she be jealous?

"That 'brings me quite nicely to' paraphrasing your clone, and asking what business is it of yours?" Alec said dangerously.

Max recognized a touchy subject when it came up and replied with a sullen silence.

"Right," Alec concluded, offering her the whiskey bottle, "But no, we didn't."

Max gulped back a shot of whiskey and passed the bottle back to him. Good. Why was that good? "So, why are you here again?"

"I was bored." Alec watched on, as Max piled most of her jeans into the 'to keep' box.

Max took up a pink summer dress and held it against herself critically.

"I've never seen you wear that," Alec remarked, from where he sat cross legged on the floor. He noticed everything Max wore, and remembered it. But then, thanks to his genetically engineered memory, he could say without hesitation what O.C. had worn last Wednesday. With Max, he somehow noticed more.

"It was my old room mate Kendra's, she thought she'd diet into it but never did."

"It still has the price tag on," Alec noted. Why were chicks so weird, even transgenic ones?

"Yeah, but it's a designer original apparently."

"Fuck it, chuck it?" Alec suggested.

"Yeah," Max threw it in the 'give away' box. "A lot of the nomalies have virtually nothing, y'know? I thought I'd give this box to Mole.'

"Yeah, pink is totally his color."

"To distribute, you idiot," Max smiled in spite of herself, and Alec caught it.

"So, I'm forgiven huh?"

"I thought you weren't here, uninvited, to say sorry," Max reminded him. Yeah, he was forgiven and she knew she was too.

"I came to make up," Alec shrugged, putting his bottle down. "You could say you're sorry huh?"

"Cold day in hell," was Max's reply, as she considered a fake leopard print jacket, puzzled. Was this O.C.'s?

"Yuck," Alec remarked, shaking his head.

Max threw it away. "I'm not frigid y'know," she paused, "not that I need to justify myself to you."

"You're loyal Max, staying with Logan, faithful for nine months knowing you couldn't do anything," Alec confessed. "I admired that about you." He admired a lot of things about her.

Max threw a ragged silk dressing gown into the give away pile. Maybe Gem could use the fabric for Eve or something. "Well quit admiring me already. Cause I wasn't."

"Faithful?" Alec clarified, before guessing immediately had caused it. "Heat's a bitch, huh?"

"Twice over," Max nodded, not knowing why she was telling Alec this. She suppose she simply needed to know if he'd judge her. She didn't know why she needed to know. Max was getting confused again.

"Yeah, well, that's not you. That's just a Manticrap FUBAR," Alec commented offhandedly, He also was feeling confused as to why Max was sharing this with him.

"Aren't you going to ask me why I didn't go to you?"

"And get your calloused bike courier palms on my cheek again? I don't think so Max." Alec was glad she hadn't gone to him. He couldn't have handled having her and then not having her.

"My hands are not callused," she shot back indignantly, holding them up to him. Dark markings had appeared unbeknownst to her while she had been talking to him.

"What the hell is on your wrist?" Alec accused, as he stood up and caught her hand, inspecting the marks in puzzlement. "What, barcodes not enough? You thought you'd get a tattoo tonight as well?"

"Oh my god!" Max gasped, looking at her wrist in alarm, "I don't know how they got there."

"What the hell are they?" Alec asked, rubbing at them with his thumb. "It must be a Manticore thing," he squinted closer, "but they look…"

"It probably has something to do with Sandeman. We know he was breeding cult.

It's the same kind of symbols I saw at their boarding school."

Max pulled her hand away gently.

"Ah, we'll probably all get 'em soon," Alec said lightly, though doubt lined his voice. "Maybe if we all put our wrists together they'll form a 3D picture of a horse," he suggested with a grin.

"You know it's just gonna be me." Max shook her head. "Could my life suck any more?"

"Now don't tempt fate Maxie," Alec said somewhat patronizingly, as he put an arm around her shoulder in comfort. We'll go find Dix. huh? He'll probably figure out what's going on."

**Part Two**

Dix didn't know what they were. He promised he'd look into it. "Hey, you got them anywhere else?"

"Oh, god no," Max prayed, taking off her jacket and turning her arms.

Mole whistled. "Check out her back."

Alec lowered the back of Max's singlet top and looked down it. "Hate to be the bearer of bad news Max but the whatever it is, it's got your back."

Max craned her neck.

"What! And keep your hands to yourself!" she ordered viciously, lashing out at Alec, the most convenient target and the only one who would take it.

"I was just trying to help, Max," Alec assured her, removing his hand in no great hurry.

"And cop a feel," Max accused irrationally.

"On your back? Don't kid yourself."

Alec knew Max was just scared, but he was feeling agitated too. What if they did all get them? White could pick them up way too easily then. It was bad enough having a reappearing bar code. Alec rolled his eyes in annoyance. Some people complained about acne. Lucky them.

Max jerked her jacket back on. She wasn't going to take her bra off in front of everyone in the control room.

"I'm going to bed," Max announced, "I have to work in the morning." She looked at them in turn, "So that you guys can eat."

"Oh yeah, nothing from Bangladesh again, if possible?" Luke requested.

"Oh, I'm real sorry. I'll have salami delivered from a Kosher delicatessen in New York shall I?" Max snarled. "I'll just fit that into my minimum wage day huh?"

Alec followed her out of the control room.

"Look, chill out Max."

"I can't chill out! What if this shit starts up on my face Alec?" Max wailed despairingly. "I can't stand this. Why me?"

"I don't know why you, but hey, even if you get'em on your face, God forbid, you'll still be hot," Alec grinned, trying to cheer her up.

"To who, a sword swallower at a circus?"

"No, to me," Alec offered simply.

"Somehow, that does not comfort me in the slightest,"" Max said, looking at him in amazement. Was Alec trying to seduce her at one of the worst moments of her life? No, that was unfair, she conceded silently, he was obviously trying to help.

"Thanks anyway, Alec. In two months time when I go into heat, if you're the last guy alive, I'll give you a call."

"Well, I'm glad to hear I'm back in your good books." Alec touched her shoulder. "It'll be okay Maxie."

"Yeah, let's just go to bed huh?"

Alec raised a suggestive eyebrow, trying to make her laugh.

"Separately," Max laughed, "and in your dreams Alec," she added with surety.

That was the problem, Alec thought gloomily, it was only ever in his dreams.

Part three 

"Well, I heard she came onto him at Crash," Greta said to Sky.

"Nah, they've been flirting for ever," Sky replied, shaking his head, "well, he's been flirting with her."

"She's so standoffish when she's with anyone other than O.C," Greta commented, putting her emergency party supply of ecstasy tablets back in her locker.

"Well, Biggs will know. He and sex on legs are best buds." Sky looked up as Biggs came over to the lockers. " Biggs, you room with CeCe, don't you?"

"Yeah, why?" Biggs questioned, putting his lunch away. Sauerkraut and goat flavored lentil salad. Jesus, how revolting.

"Well the latest to hit the rumor mill says CeCe and Druid got busy last night at Crash. Did it in the alley 'cording to Hummer the barman."

"Why don't you and CeCe ever invite us round to your place?" Greta inquired archly, "too good for us?"

"No, no," Biggs replied absent-mindedly, as he recalled wondering where CeCe had been last night, "Um, weird neighbors."

"Don't like you having parties huh?" Sky nodded knowledgeably.

Biggs thought of the freaks. "Something like that."

CeCe and Max stood in front of the TV monitor drinking their morning coffee, out of habit rather than actual need.

"I don't know what problem O.C. has with me today," a sweating, flushed CeCe commented as she sipped her coffee. "God, it was so good Max. We went back to his place after the alley. Holy crap, the guy has skills."

"Awesome." Max swirled her coffee round to dissolve the sugar. "Did you break him? Only the guy still hasn't shown up for work yet."

"Maybe," CeCe murmured absently, glancing over at the bike maintenance guy Normal called in every month. "God, that guy is so hot."

Max regarded the slightly greasy, though admittedly healthy looking, guy with his builders crack. His hair needed a wash. "I'd take a personal day CeCe," she advised. "Just don't ask Normal in the back room."

"Yeah good idea, I'll go back round to Druid's," CeCe remarked, fanning her face.

A news flash caught the girls' attention.

"…serial rapist smashed to a bloody pulp, according to police reports the suspect is a transgenic.

"Great, that's all we need. What do-gooding, transgenic, vigilante moron would draw attention to us like that?" CeCe asked, frustrated.

Max bit her bottom lip guiltily. 'Oops'

Part four 

Max and Alec sat on a piece of disused timber by the docks in the warm spring sunshine. Max had her head in her hands.

Alec skipped a stone along the waters surface, "Stop beating yourself up about it."

"I was such an idiot!" Max pulled at her hair. "Why did I do it?"

"You were angry, you're a trained killer. You didn't kill the scum." Alec put his hands in his pockets and gazed along the shoreline. "I'm impressed by your freakin'restraint."

"I could have just knocked the gun out of his hands and taken off." Max shook her head in frustration. "I screwed up Alec."

"Welcome to Screw Up Club. I got here first though, so shotgun president," Alec said, pulling a tube of sun block out of his pocket and proceeding to put a blob of lotion on his face.

"What are you doing ?" Max asked incredulously. But she couldn't help herself, she reached over and smoothed the cream over a spot he had missed.

Alec was relieved he couldn't involuntarily purr under Max's administrations. "I freckle okay? It looks dumb."

"Hate to break it to you, but you've always had a few freckles anyway, Alec." Max dropped her hand as a thought struck her. "That's where Freck comes from, isn't it, Freckles?"

"Yeah and I prefer Alec. Even Dick would have been an improvement," Alec snorted. "I hated that nickname. I tried to get the other kids in my unit to call me Sandy or Blondie, but nah Freck it was, and stay it did till you came into my life."

"You really owe me then?" Max commented, scratching the runes on her arm unconsciously.

"Totally." Alec took her hand and looked at the runes on her wrist. "They're not that bad, you know."

"I hate'em," Max sighed crossly. "I'm just a bigger freak now than all the rest of us."

"Don't say that."

Alec raised her nearest marked wrist to his mouth, and kissed it slowly. He leaned back and waited to get whacked on the head. He had been expecting it the moment his lips touched her skin. Nothing happened.

Seconds passed. Max sat quietly on the piece of timber, her face unreadable. "What did you do that for?" she said at last.

"I care about you," Alec stated simply. "I hate seeing you unhappy."

Max smiled shyly and laid her palm gently against his cheek. "Yeah, lately, I kinda figured you might."

"I want you Max." Alec held her gaze and clutched her hair in his hands. He pulled her head closer to his. "I've wanted you, since I the day I first saw you."

"I kinda figured that, a long time ago," Max whispered. She hesitated, unsure, before leaning forward and touching her lips against his. It was time she moved on from Logan once and for all.

Thekiss was confusing at first, neither of them quite sure of their true feelings nor the motives of the other. But the longer their lips met, (and Alec's mouth opened gladly to Max's invasion) the less mixed their emotions became, until they felt just one. Mutual lust.

Max ran her hands up Alec's shirt, enjoying the feel of his warm body.

Alec pushed her away suddenly. "Is this to get over Logan?" he demanded holding her at arms length. He had pride.

Max nodded, meeting his eyes.

"Only in the sense of moving on," she paused, "Are you kissing me because I remind you of Sam?"

"No!" Alec denied strongly. Kissing Max and kissing Sam were surprisingly different experiences. They had different techniques; how wack.

"Stop thinking, Alec."

Aggressively, Max kissed him again. Alec couldn't resist her any longer for the sake of any stupid principles. He reminded himself he didn't really have any anyway.

He gathered Max's hair more tightly in his hands and kissed her back hard, the way he had always dreamed of doing. This was way better than any dream.

Part Five 

Dix, Joshua and Mole hurried over to the X5 and X6 living quarters on Oak Street, early that evening. Dix had finally managed to source and translate Max's runes. It looked like the end of the world was coming and Max was going to be everyone's savior. Who'da guessed?

They paused out side Max's bedroom door, aghast at the banging and crashing coming from within. It sounded like two bodies had just slammed one another against a wall.

They heard Max cry out almost as if in pain and Alec's voice a guttural grunt, "I've wanted to do this to you since Manticore Max."

"Holy Christ!" Mole said panicked. "I heard they had a fight yesterday in the kitchen. 494's obviously collecting on all 452's insults and bitching . He's murdering the potential savior of the world! We gotta get in there."

Joshua chuckled, not at all confused by the situation. "No, Mole," Josh said in that calming way of his, "494 not killing 452. Little fella and Alec gettin' busy."

_AN: And they all lived happily ever freakin after._

The End!


End file.
